


Evidence

by MasterOfThePen



Category: Persona 4
Genre: Abduction, Canon Compliant, Gen, Kidnapping, Missing Scene, No Dialogue
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-08-17
Updated: 2013-08-17
Packaged: 2017-12-23 20:29:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 935
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/930794
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MasterOfThePen/pseuds/MasterOfThePen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Naoto Shirogane was willing to gather evidence for this latest case by any means necessary. And if that meant using himself as bait to lure out the true culprit, then so be it.</p><p>NOTE: I'm using male pronouns because this takes place before the encounter with Naoto's Shadow.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Evidence

Naoto Shirogane was willing to gather evidence for this latest case by any means necessary. And if that meant using himself as bait to lure out the true culprit, then so be it.

He sat at the kitchen table with his pistol laid out before him in pieces. They were arranged neatly on a old cloth while he cleaned the barrel and chambers with solvent. One last check before he reassembled it.

And then the doorbell rang. Naoto pushed himself away from his seat and called out “Coming!” before answering the door. It was probably the deliveryman with a package. Then again, the mail usually didn't arrive this early.

He opened the door, but no one was there. Naoto peeked his head out further, just to make sure.

Nope. No one in sight. Probably some kids from the neighborhood who thought it would be funny to pull a prank on the “new kid” in town. The boy detective scowled and shut the door.

Just as he was about to turn the latch, the hairs on the back of his neck prickled in warning. The next thing he knew, the door flew open, knocking him to the floor. Naoto barely caught sight of the silhouette framed in the doorway as he fell. Before he could regain his feet, a pair rough hands had seized him by the shoulders and jerked him back. Naoto's arms shot upward, flailing, as he struggled to keep his balance. A damp cloth was pressed over his mouth as sweet, cloying fumes filled his nostrils.

Oh God! How could he have been so _stupid?_  Naoto tired to scream, but any noise he made was hopelessly muffled. He scrabbled at the hand clamped over his mouth, his eyes growing wide with terror as his assailant dragged him further inside the house. The assailant pushed Naoto's hands down and pinned them there with one arm wrapped around his torso. Definitely a man, and a large one at that.

The boy detective's first instinct was to struggle, to break free from his captor's grip. A cold, rational voice said, _There's no escape. You have to calm down and assess the situation before you pass out. You have to make sure that you remember exactly what happened to you._

And then another voice. Small, frightened, like a child: _No! No, no, no! I don't want to die! Have to get away! Have to escape!_

Only a few seconds had passed, but Naoto could already feel the fumes from the chloroform beginning to take effect. His vision grew blurry and his body felt unbelievably heavy. It was difficult to even think...

His heart hammered against his chest wildly. Short, shallow breaths. He was on the verge of hyperventilating due to panic. At this rate, he'd pass out without having learned anything about his assailant.

Rationality won out in the end. Naoto had to calm down in order to slow the absorption of the toxin. He exhaled slowly and took a deep breath through his nose, knowing that it only served to send more of those noxious fumes into his lungs, and cursed his weak and traitorous heart for carrying that poison throughout his system at a frantic rate. He stopped struggling and went limp, hoping that it would be enough to retain consciousness for just a little while longer. Just enough for Naoto to get a good look at his assailant.

Several heartbeats later, the assailant loosened his hold on Naoto's body and the boy detective fell to the floor. Naoto found himself staring at the legs of the kitchen table. His assailant shuffled about behind him. Naoto took a few more shallow breaths, hoping to get some much needed oxygen to his brain. His eyelids drooped lower, and he felt his tentative hold on consciousness slipping.

He could hear his assailant breathing heavily as large hands grabbed him about the shoulders and shoved him into a rough sack. Burlap. It smelled faintly of onions. Naoto felt himself being jerked up and about as his assailant carried him over his shoulder. A man, yes, definitely a man. Naoto could tell that much. And based on his shuffling gait and heavy breathing, he probably wasn't in the best of shape. An older man, perhaps? Between 30 and 40 years old? No voices or idle chatter. Only a single set of footsteps as his assailant moved about. He must be working alone. So that means...

Naoto's thoughts stumbled about in his mind, much like his assailant. Footsteps scraped against pavement. His assailant had carried him outside, through the front door. Probably. Hard to tell at this point. Everything was so dark and hazy... Difficult to think.

A loud grunt. Naoto felt himself being swung forward over the man's shoulder. The sack was ripped open, and Naoto blinked in dazed confusion. Darkness. A single impact as he was thrown against... _something_. Something solid. But it wasn't solid. Not exactly. There was a moment of resistance, but Naoto felt as though he was passing through some permeable membrane. Maybe.

And then he was falling through darkness. Cold, unending darkness. Fog everywhere. Everything hazy... He closed his eyes, and the darkness wasn't any different from before.

Naoto had no idea whether he would reach the bottom or not, because his tentative grip on consciousness finally slipped just as he was tossed into that black oblivion. In those few seconds before  losing consciousness, Naoto sent a short prayer to the heavens.

_Please... Someone help me..._

And in answer, his mind conjured up an image of Kanji Tatsumi before the blackness swallowed him whole.


End file.
